Dare to Flair

There are a few options out there when it comes to portable bars. The ones that we will be taking a look at are the ones that are designed for flair bartenders.

Worldwide competitions call for a lot of traveling, so these bars must be very compact and lightweight.

The first bar to be spotlighted will be the Evolution Mobile Bar.

Produced by BartenderOne, Evolution can be set up and disassembled in less than five minutes, holds 24 pieces of stemware, and comes equipped with a speed rail and built in garnish containers.

The speed rail holds up to 10 – 750mL bottles, and there is also a built in juice rail, which can hold up to 6 -1 litre store and pour jugs.

The ice well is very durable and can hold up to 30 lbs of ice.

After use, the bar breaks down into a self contained, compact case that measures 32” x 24” x10”.

The total weight of the closed bar is 59 lbs.

I have used this bar many times and it has proven to be very durable and can take some real abuse. (I’ve stood on it for martini waterfalls!)

The cost of this unit is $1499 USD, and comes with a skirt to drape around the front. You can also get your company name or logo printed on a custom skirt.

Next time we will be looking at the Flairco portable bar. Stay tuned…

When you start to seriously get into flair bartending, you will need to invest in a few flair, or practice bottles.

These bottles are great for practicing new moves and sequences, without worrying about having broken glass everywhere.

Flairco is the original and largest designer of flair bottles in the world.

Originally, there were only a few different bottles available.

Today, there is a huge variety to choose from including different branded name bottles, glow in the dark bottles, customized logo bottles, light up bottles etc.

Ranging in price from around $19.95 (basic), to $40.75(lighted), flair bottles are very durable and should last a lifetime.

However, flair bottles are NOT un-breakable. They are shatter proof. I’ve used over 250 flair bottles to date, and I have had a few break on me. ( Don’t throw them off the roof in the dead of winter!! )

Recently, another brand of bottles has hit the market place as an in-expensive alternative to the original.

They are known as “flip” bottles. They come in a variety of colors, and you can pick them up for around $10.

My experience is that these bottles are inferior to the Flairco brand. Although they look and feel similar, there’s just something different about them. I’ve also seen them break far more often than the original.

For your own flair bottles or any other bar products, click here.

The North American leg of the Skyy Global challenge took place on Tuesday September 30 at the beautiful Circa nightclub in Toronto.

Competitors from across North America gathered for a chance to win a trip to Monte Carlo for the World Finals.

Competitors came from as far as Las Vegas, Vancouver, Ottawa, and there were even a few that were from right here in Toronto.

I was slated to perform fifth, so I had plenty of time to build up the nerves, watch some of my competition, and play little head games with myself.

By the time it was my turn, I was pretty pumped up and was telling myself that due to the talent pool that had assembled, I was gunning for sixth place and a shot at the money round.

I was happy with the performance that I gave, and now it was time to watch and wait as the rest of the field battled it out.

By the end of the show, we had seen some pretty exciting routines. Now for the results…..

(results are un-official)In the money round:

In 6^th place…Lesley Ciuffreda

In 5^th place…Kris PerezIn

4^th place…David Jennings (that’s me)

In 3^rd place…Jean Vasquez

In 2^nd place…Matt Majid

And in 1^st place, taking home over $6000 in prizes…Mr. Collin Griffiths.

The night was a huge success followed by an after party at Jack Astor’s afterwards.

Special thanks go out to Graham Warner, the WFA representative in Canada, and Rob Carson, brand ambassador from Skyy vodka for making this competition one of the best in Canada.

What kind of Vodka do we drink?…….SKYY